Sony Builds Software Scaffolding for Playstation 3

1. Sony builds software scaffolding for Playstation 3 Yoshiko Hara - July 25, 2005 Tokyo — Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is moving on multiple fronts to lay the software foundation for the planned spring 2006 rollout of the Playstation 3. SCEI has struck licensing deals with several software development tool companies and is purchasing another — longtime partner SN Systems Ltd. And at last week's Playstation Meeting here, the company announced a December ship date for a reference design that will include a 3.4-GHz Cell processor. Sony began shipping second-generation evaluation systems, based on a 2.4-GHz Cell, in the spring. "Real-time physics simulation and programmable shaders are the PS3's two big differences from conventional software programming," said Ken Kutaragi, chief executive officer of SCEI. Traditionally, motion capture or key frame animation programs movement, with texture mapping rendering the surface of objects. Real-time physics simulation will replace motion capture and programmable shading will replace texture mapping in the Playstation 3, Kutaragi said. To support game programming via physics simulation, SCEI has struck strategic licensing agreements with Havok (Dublin, Ireland), a top supplier of physics engines, and Ageia Technologies Inc., a U.S. supplier of physics hard- ware accelerators. Under the agreements, SCEI obtains sublicensing rights to Havok's physics and animation engines and Ageia's NovodeX SDK, a physics library for PS3. The engines and library will be available in the fall as part of the software development kit for the Playstation 3. Sony has also signed deals with Transmeta Corp., for optimization tools and debuggers, and with U.S. game developer Epic Games, to include Epic's Unreal Engine 3 in the PS3 software development kit. Meanwhile, Sony is acquiring SN Systems (Bristol, England), which will operate as an SCEI subsidiary. The deal gains SCEI the right to include SN's ProDG and other game development tools in the software development kit for the PS3.

2. The first-generation PS3 evaluation system shipped with a 2.4-GHz Cell processor, Nvidia GeForce graphics processor and 256-Mbyte XDR Rambus module. This spring Sony rolled the second- generation system, a desktop unit that upped the XDR to 512 Mbytes. SCEI said at its Play-station Meeting last week that it has shipped 450 evaluation systems worldwide and that it expects to deliver 200 units in August, 300 in September, 3,000 in October and more than 3,000 in November. In December, a PS3 reference design will ship that will include a 3.4-GHz Cell; an Nvidia RSX graphics engine; a 512-Mbyte XDR; Blu-ray, DVD and CD optical drives; and a hard-disk drive. "We aim to offer a platform that lasts over 10 years. Thus the PS3 is full-HD [1,920 x 1,080 progressive scan]-ready and has a Blu-ray Disc system," Kutaragi said. But he added a caveat. Given the platform's high performance, he said, "we often are asked whether we will be able to offer the PS3 at a price befitting a home appliance. All we can say is that we'll do our best. It won't be cheap."